Avengers Initiative
by randomgirldadada
Summary: Steve just wants friends, Tony just wants to forget, Bruce just wants to be invisible, Clint and Natasha just want out, and Thor just wants to know what's going on. High School AU
1. Chapter 1

Tony

Tony lazily traced the outline of the glowing triagular device implated in his chest with a precise finger. It was still a bit surreal, he had created this, this gigantic leap in the scientific community, yet no one knew of such a brilliance even existed. This annoyed him to no end but he managed to keep it secret despite all the attention that came with being the son of Howard Stark brought. Sometimes he had to remind himself why he was keeping it from the world, why he refused to let anyone know. And her face would always pop into his head, smiling that sweet smile that he couldn't resist. The was a knock at the door, causing the boy genius to jump and scramble for his shirt.

"Uh, hold on a second!" He yelled, trying to force his head through his shirt.

"Tony?" A soft voice called, allowing him to sigh in relief and stop trying to force the t-shirt over his head(which wasn't really working anyway).

"Come in Pep," he called, just as the large oak door to his bedroom slowly creeped open.

The redhead stuck her head into the room, smiling at her long-time friend with that small sweet smile. Her eyes momentarily flickered to the device in his chest before she swiftly shut the door and joined him on his bed.

"How's it going?" She asked, her light blue eyes showing concern. Tony smirked slightly.

"Pretty good, I got this raging case of heartburn but other than that..." She shoved him playfully but the concern still littered her eyes.

"Really Pepper, I'm fine." He inisted, meeting her eyes with his own dark ones. She blinked before smiling once again and nodding in understanding. They were silent for a moment, neither sure of what to say. Tony hated awkward silences, they were always so...awkward. He opened his mouth to make some obscene remark about Pepper catching him without his shirt to lighten the mood but was beat to it by Pepper herself.

"So you excited for school tomorrow?" She blurted. Leave it to Pepper to turn the subject onto school but it was a welcomed relief to the silence from before.

"Ha excited? Pepper you and I both know that this new school's not going to be any different than the others. Just filled with people wanting something from 'Tony Stark' or his assistant." He laughed bitterly, remembering all the others schools they had attended where the same scenario had transpired.

"I'm not your assistant."

Tony gave her a confused look,"I was talking about Rhodey."

The redhead just rolled her eyes, getting up from his bed and walking to his door,much to his disappointment.

"Whatever, Stark. Get some sleep."

"Yes sir." He agreed with a salute, tucking himself into the covers like a good solider.

"Rhodey would be proud." Pepper laughed. Tony grinned, turning away from the door to give the illusion of sleep when in reality he would be awake for a few more hours before exhastion overtook him.

"And Tony?"

"Hmm?" He asked, rolling back over to face the girl again. She had a stern yet worried look on her face as she spoke,"You really should give people the benefit of the doubt. If you're afraid of being used again I understand but you shouldn't push everyone away, feelings get hurt and hearts get broken. Remember that okay? Good night." With that she was gone, leaving Tony alone with the luminous glow of his brilliance. He tapped away at it as he contimplated her words. Maybe she was right, it had been months after the incident, maybe it was time for him to others back in, especially Pepper and Rhodey. But he knew he couldn't, not yet, not even with them. So as he tapped at the arc reactor in his chest he silently begged that the nightmares wouldn't be so bad tonight.

Steve

Steve coughed, sounding as if he was retching away all of his organs into the tissue cupped in his hand. After his coughing fit he plopped down against his bed again, hoping he could make it 5 minutes without another fit. He thought that he was immune to all sicknesses but it seems that even the most advanced of sciences could best the common cold. He wrapped his comforter closer around himself as his body was racked by a set of powerful chills, teeth chattering together(though more out of dramatic effect that actual cold). It would be his luck to get a cold before school started the following morning. He didn't even want to get out of bed for meals, let alone to get to a school 6 miles away, though it wasn't as if he had to walk but still! He shook off his thoughts of selfpity and turned them to what his first day at his new school would be like, seeing as he wasn't getting much sleep anyway. He thought of what the campus would be like, he had be there for orientation of course but he wondered what it would be like filled with other students. Filled with new potential friends. Steve hadn't had many friends when he was younger, in fact he was the target of many bullies when he was in elementary and middle school. He was excited but also frightened, what if he didn't make any friends? What if nobody liked him? What if he was bullied again? He knew that the last option was highly improbable but that was despite the point. The boy harboured all of these fears deep within his chest, aching just like he sore throat as he burst into another coughing fit. He slumped against his pillow in pure agony, turning his head to catch a glimpse of the clock. 5:59. He groaned, smashing the snooze button just as the alarm blared at him to wake up. He sadly rolled out of bed, blowing his nose on his way to the bathroom to begin his morning rituals. He wasn't getting anymore sleep, that was for sure.

Thor

The young blonde boy was trying to contain his increasing excitement as he waited at the bus stop with Loki, whose nose was in a book as he exuded an air of indiffernce. Thor was happily jumping from foot to foot, eagerly checking around the corner for the so called 'school bus' as his father had informed him. He caught sight of Loki, his mop of shaggy black hair the only thing visible to Thor's eyes other than his emerald green garb.

"Brother, are you not filled with anticipation for the commencement of midgardian school?" Thor questioned his adoptive brother, stopping his incessant hopping to hear his reply. Loki's sharp emerald eyes flickered up to meet his pale blue ones in a sharp glare before returning to his book.

"I think having anticipation for such a thing is foolish. I do not understand why father send us here in the first place." He mumbled, somewhat agressively flipping his page.

"Why to connect with our midgardian brethern of course! A good ruler must have knowlegde for those other than himself." Thor said, feeling proud for remembering the lesson his father taught him.

"Yes, but I'm not made to be ruler Thor, you are. I do not see why I had to accompany you." Loki pointed out. Thor opened his mouth to reply just as he heard the sound he was anticipating all morning. He began hopping again, nearly squealing like a teenage girl which was quite strange coming from such a maculine male with long blonde hair and the beginnings of a beard. Loki rolled his eyes, stuffing his book of spells into his bag and following his brother onto the bus. Thor gazed at all his fellow students as he moved through the aisle, not looking for a seat like he should've been. He took in the sight of a mortal with his head against the glass, clearly asleep with a redtipped nose and tissues sticking out of every pocket Thor could see. He walked further down, catching an image of two others, one a boy with a purple beanie on covering most of his light brown hair, the other a girl with fire red hair that was offset by the large amount of black she was wearing. He allowed himself to be dragged into a seat away from all the mortals by Loki, who plopped his brother down beside him before losing himself in his book once more. Thor was so excited that he could barely contain himself when he felt the bus begin to move. Midgard was so fascinating!

Clint and Natasha

The two 'adoptive' siblings got off the bus after all the others, which was longer than it should've been due to some guy with long blonde hair trying to wake up some sleeping kid who thanked him with a sneeze and a handshake that didn't seem entirely santitary. The two scoped the place out, first mapping out all escape routes before mentally categorizing all the personnel on the premises.

"What do you think?" Clint asked Natasha, leaning close to her so that only she could hear. She gazed out at the crowd a bit longer, taking in multiple different situations. Presently there was a large crowd collecting around a limosine as a male with dark features helped a smiling redhead out and an african american boy rolled his eyes them. A small curly haired brunette boy with glasses was trying to make it through the crowd to get to the other side of it without drawing any attention to himself. The sickly boy and they large blonde from the bus were talking animantly to each other and a small pale dark haired boy followed after them without looking up from the thick book in his hands.

"Show-off, shy nerd, a sickly kid, a dumb blonde, and a kid brother. Nothing special." She supplied but she kept her guard up, one could never be too careful. Clint nodded,shifting his backpack higher on his shoulder and stuffing his hands in his pockets to fiddle with the arrow head found there.

"I don't know what Fury's thinking sending us here, or Coulson for that matter. We were trained for better than highschool." He spat the last word out like a curse, as if the notion disgusted him. Natasha agreed wholeheartedly but turned to face him anyway.

"We aren't here to question orders we're here to follow them. If Fury says jump we say how high got it?"

The boy nodded begrugdingly.

"Good, let's go." She nodded towards the main building and he followed after her without question, though he was frowning slightly.

Bruce

Bruce could almost laugh at horrible his luck was. Of course that wouldn't be a good idea in this situation but it was the thought that counted. He clutched his books as tightly to his chest as possible, his knuckles turning white due to the strain. He really didn't need this right now, his stress levels were already higher than normal since he had to force himself through that crowd earlier, and due to the fact this was his third school he had enrolled in. They were catching up to him. The four bullies grinned crockedly, feril looks in their dark eyes. Bruce gulped, fear building in his chest but not fear of them. Fear for them. He could already feel 'the other guy' pushing against his conciousness, trying to burst free already. Their leader stepped forward, towering over Bruce's small frame. He leaned forward, flashing the young boy his perfect teeth.

"Hey little guy, are you lost? The middle school is down the road." He sneered, leaning over Bruce in a demeaning manner. He was used to this. Bruce was never average size for his age group and to top it off he had been offered to skip a few grades, being age 14 with a mind developed past high school. He had refused, it would've drawn to much attention to himself. Something he didn't want. It wasn't his fault he was small, and it wasn't his fault he was smart either but usually his peers failed to see that.

"No, I'm okay." Bruce easily dismissed, dropping his gaze to the ground and trying to move past his agressor. The larger boy stopped him with a hand, shoving roughly against Bruce's thin chest. He was caught off guard, stumbling a bit at the contact. The leader laughed,"Ha, the kid can't even take a little push."

His cronies laughed but Bruce didn't understand why they would laugh at him. So what he was different? So what he was small? So what he was smart? The other guy raged in his head, demanded to be let out, reminding Bruce to calm his temper before he did something he regretted. He took slow even breathes to calm himself. Releasing them slowly he was able to reign in the other guy in a bit, relaxing his shoulders.

"Ooh, is the pipsqueak getting mad?" The leader sneered, shoving him again. Bruce stumbled back.

"Stop." He whispered, barely audible but his assailant heard.

"What are you gonna do? Ya gonna run home to mommy?" He quipped, shoving until Bruce was slammed against the lockers roughly. That one struck home.

"Please, stop." Bruce pleaded, gripping his books tighter as a war raged in his mind that he was slowly losing, if he didn't get out of here soon he was gonna lose it.

"Why should I?" The older boy whispered menacingly. Bruce looked up at him, his curly hair slightly obscuring his dark eyes.

"You wouldn't like me when I'm angry.

A/N:Yes my friends I have started a new one. Yeah if you guys want T'Chala I can incorporate him.


	2. Chapter 2

Bruce

They laughed in his face, tears collecting at the edges of their eyes. Bruce saw a green tint collecting on his forearm, causing him to panically roll down his shirt sleeves and attempt to leave again. The upperclassman stopped him with a hand, rubbing his eyes with the other.  
"That's rich kid," he laughed. Bruce tried to calm his breathing, searching his mind for some remnants of the meditation techniques he had read in a book.  
"Well, well, what do we have here? Did someone forget to invite me to the party?" The group turned to the new voice.  
He smirked at them all, a severe case of bedhead sitting on top of his head messily. He watched the group with a set of mocking deep brown eyes and wore a deep red short sleeved shirt with a long sleeved gold one underneath with jeans.  
The leader sneered,"As if this concerns you fish."  
"Oh I know, but sticking my nose where it doesn't belong is one of my favorite pass times." Who was this kid?  
The older boy just rolled his eyes, nodding his head in the direction of the new arrival. Suddenly the other three boys had picked him up by his shirt.  
"Whoa whoa boys! And I thought we were just becoming friends." He said, watching them all with the same blank stare though he didn't look worried. Bruce's eyes widened, this was exactly what he was trying to avoid. He didn't want people to get hurt because of him, whether it was because of the other guy or himself. He attempted to go forward to help the other boy but he was denied again by a shove to the chest. His books tumbled from his grasp as he slammed into the lockers, a wave of anger slamming into his conciousness as he glared up at the older boy.  
"You're not going anywhere." Bruce felt an subconcious growl building up in his throat that he desperatly tried to dismiss but it was cut off by a strangled cry come from before him. He looked around the other boy just as the third body dropped, joining the other two in a heap around the freshman. He stared at the two blankly, a strange glowing blue light being emitted from a device in his hand. Bruce watched the boy with a look of awe while the older stared in horror.  
The freshman smirked,"Sorry about that. I have personnal space issues."  
"You're a freak!" The upperclassman yelped.  
"Stop, you're making me blush!" The younger boy stated with a grin. The bully couldn't get away fast enough, going as far as to jump over the groaning bodies of his friends. Bruce felt the other guy slowly begin to back off, crawling back to his corner of Bruce's mind, disappointed. The dark haired boy turned to Bruce who was busy picking his fallen books. He walked over to Bruce, kneeling down to help the curly haired teen, much to his surprise. He held them out for him. Bruce took them with a murmured,"Thank you," before quickly shuffling down the hall. He knew that he should be more greatful to the other boy but he just wanted to get to class and forget this ever happened.

Tony

Okay, so maybe breaking out the repulser beams this early in the relationship was a bad idea, Tony thought as he watched the other teen bolt down the hall. The other kid was already shaken up from the encounter by the way he was shivering when Tony strutted(that's right because Tony Stark doesn't walk he struts) past the scene, a marvel in technological advancement probably didn't help that. Well,on the bright side it did give him a chance to test the bad boys out.  
"Pretty good." He said to himself, slipping his newly tested toys off his hands and into his pockets. He hands followed soon after as he turned on his heel, whistling as he continued to roam the halls as he had been before the interuption. His leasurely stroll didn't last very long though when he felt a heavy hand clamp down on his collar and tug. He was nearly choked. He coughed dramatically until his assailant released him.  
"What do you think you're doing out here?" Tony turned around and came face to face with a man in his early to mid-thrities with light brown hair, probably the principal. Tony pasted on his best boyish smile before answering.  
"What? You mean this isn't homeroom? Darn. Those school maps are just so confusing."  
The man narrowed his eyes,"Very funny young man. Get to class." He ordered.  
"Sir yes sir." Tony agreed, saluting before marching towards his classroom. He had nothing better to do anyway.

Steve

Today was going better than he had hoped. He had already made a new friend, most of his teachers had been pleasent and his cold seemed to be getting better. He sneezed. Okay not that last one but who cares? He was happy. Steve sat at his desk, happily scribbling away at his sheet of loose leaf. The teacher, Ms. Hill, had given some free time so he was partaking in one of his favorite hobbies:drawing. So far it was just a mass of curved lines that could barely be mistaken for a human siloette but Steve had time to fill it in. He was sitting alone quietly, Thor had english this period, so he was slightly surprised when someone sat down in the chair next to him. He looked up, coming face to face with a feiry redhead with matching bright red lips. She blinked her clear, ocean blue eyes as her gaze caught his and he sent her a small smile.  
"Hello ma'am." He greeted sweetly, remembering the manners his mother had drilled into him from a young age.  
"Hey." She grunted, laying her redhead down on her arms though her body language remained stiff and alert. The two sat in awkward silence(which was more awkward for Steve since the girl was breathing deeply like she had fallen asleep), Steve shifted uncomfortably in his seat while absentmindly drawing lines.  
"I'm Steve." He blurted, suddenly racked by another coughing fit. She mumbled incoherently, rubbing her eyes and hefting herself up onto her elbows. She watched him with a disarming clear blue stare, blinking lazily as Steve grew even more umcomfortable.  
"Natasha," she sighed, slowly blinking her eyes, her eyelashes soft against her pale skin. Steve swallowed audibly, his throat aching at the action.  
"Nice to meet you." He smiled sheepishly, his cheeks burning as he heard his voice crack. She raised an eyebrow at his sudden flush before flopping her head back onto her arms. I hate puberty, he thought miserably, holding his head down as he continued his sketch.

Clint

He was anti-social. There was no disputing that fact and he had accepted it. So he sat in the back of the classroom, growled at those who came too close and kept his head down. He was familiar with Natasha and depended on her to watch his back so he was off kilter when they weren't side by side but he wouldn't exactly call that being social. Nope this was a whole new scenario for Clint. Lab partners. He snuck a peak at the nervous looking darkhaired boy beside him who shakily cleaned his glasses before putting them back on. During his introduction Clint was sure the kid was going to have a panic attack, with his short breaths and darting eyes, but he made it through(barely). Now he was fiddling with his hands, mumbling to himself like a crazy person. Clint felt for the guy. This kid was a truly pitiful sight, with his frightened round brown eyes, the constant shivering like a chihuahua. Oh yes, Clint could tell he was bullied a lot. So yes Clint was anti-social but he wasn't cruel.  
"Hey kid." He grunted, attempting to make, gulp, small talk. The brunette jumped, catching the pen he had been twiddling with.  
"I think we're the same age." The brunette murmured, not looking Clint in the eye.  
"Your point?"  
"I don't think it's accurate to call me a kid without calling yourself one too."  
He had to give him that, the kid was as smart as he looked. Or just a smart alec. Clint gave an indifferent shrug and the two fell into a awkward silence. Now what?, he thought, unsure of himself. This whole talking to people thing sure was hard.

Thor

Midgard was simply, and truly, amazing. He would turn a corner and find a new wonder waiting there for him. Unfortunently his brother did not share his almost child-like fascination with all things Midgard. In fact Loki had watched all of Thor's proceedings with a look of digust, commanding that he "Step away from the midgardian water dispenser! It is most likely riddled with disease!" And other commands of that nature. But overall Thor was having a most grand day. He strolled down the hall, his brother shuffling close at his heels, the two heading to dining hall.  
"Isn't today most splendid brother?" Thor asked Loki, a goofy grin plastered to his face.  
"Yes if by splendid you mean constantly fighting off disease." Loki muttered bitterly, his head down in his spellbook.  
"Brother I don't think that midgardians are riddled with disease."  
Loki scoffed in response.  
"You should be glad brother. You are always complaining about being confined to the castle and now we have the opportunity to explore, to actually explore brother and you are squandering it with your prejudice!" Thor said exasperated, spinning around to face his brother. But he wasn't there.  
"Loki?" Thor called through the crowd. No answer. Oh no.


	3. Chapter 3

Thor

This was not good. No not good at all. Thor raced through the halls, slamming classroom doors open and calling out his brother's name. His first day of midgardian school and he had already lost his own brother! What would Father think?

Thor shook the thought from his mind, trying to focus on finding Loki before he got into any trouble.

"Heimdall if you harbor any love for your future king please direct me in the way of my brother." Thor prayed, knowing that somewhere the god was listening or watching. The sound of mischevious laughter filled Thor's ears, directing him down the hall to his right.

"I do not know whether or not that was but many thanks Heimdall." The blond beamed, running in the direction of his brother's voice. He entered into a large space filled with books of all sorts, students sitting at tables by themselves and flipping through pages. The library. Thor wondered why he didn't check here first.

"Loki!" He called, cupping his hands around his mouth as he attempted to make his voice louder. A few choice people shushed him, glaring before turning back to their books.

'They dare shush the prince of Asgard!'

An old women, wrinkles dragging down her skin in saggy bags, walked over to him with a scowl on her thin lips.

'The hags of this realm are quite frightening.'

"Young man," she hissed, smacking the ruler she held against her weathered palm,"this is a library not a barn. You will be quite or you will leave understood?"

He wanted to teach the foolish old woman her place but he was on mission and couldn't be bothered with trivial things. Besides his father taught him to respect his elders, and boy was she his elder. He nodded his agreement and the librarian scowled, turning on her heel and mumbling about not getting paid enough.

Thor went back to his search, weaving in and between rows and columns while calling/whispering his brother's name.

"Loki I swear to the all father that if you do not reveal where you are hiding I will skin you and mount you on the mantel."

"That's quite the image." A familiar voice stated from above his head, sounding of silver bells. He looked up, tilting his head at Loki's posistion.

His michevious brother sat on top of the high bookshelf, lazily flipping through the pages of his spellbook. Thor let out a sigh of relief but he couldn't really say he was surprised. Loki had always loved the library at home, always skipping their combat lessons and other such things to read. Thor didn't get it. The blond frowned at his brother, crossing his arm over his chest.

"Brother you cannot just run off by yourself."

"Do not worry so much, what's done is done as they say on this stupid planet." Loki muttered, with an annoyed flick of his wrist.

"Are you angry at me brother?" Thor asked thoughtfully. He may not have been the observant person but Thor was no fool. He knew something wrong with his brother, from the slight twitch of his ebony eyebrow to the slight quirk of his lip every so often.

Loki sighed, closing his book in a fluid motion, turning his emerald gaze to Thor.

"No brother, I love this planet and all it's inhabitants. I just like being the center of attention." Thor frowned at his sarcasm. In a poof of theatric smoke Loki was beside him, spellbook clasped firmly in his grasp.

"Come, let us go." Loki sighed, heading towards the door.

"We can eat in here if you'd prefer Loki." Thor offered, he knew his brother was uncomfortable in crowded areas and this place seemed to all be crowded areas. Loki stopped, looking over his should at his brother with a skeptical look as if had misheard.

"Really?"

Thor nodded,"Yes, if it's what you want brother. I will go collect the food and you stay here. Do not get yourself into trouble." He warned, running out of the library.

"Walk young man!"

He slowed himself to a walk, a scowl curving onto his features. He really didn't like that woman.

Tony

If you were wondering, yes Tony's day was going good until now. Again, until now. Long story short, lunch was a freaking zoo. Flock after flock of groupies and wannabes flooded towards him, all wanting to be his friend or to just get a glimpse of the 'Tony Stark'. He nearly vomited...like twice. He couldn't take it, that's why he dragged Rhodey and Pepper from the chaos after he had thrown a couple of hundreds in the air in an attempt to distract the pack. It worked. Now the three sat together in the hall, silently munching on cafeteria food. Except Tony. He could last a few more hours without food, and he wasn't going to eat that stuff they called food.

"Augh, I'm sooooooo bored." Tony groaned, banging his head against the wall. No reaction. He stopped his assault to plop his head on Pepper's shoulder.

"Pepper entertain me." He pleaded, looking up at the redhead with big, brown eyes. Yeah, the eyes always worked.

"Nope." She deadpanned. He stopped the eyes with a frown. He turned to his other friend.

"Rhodey?"

"I don't think so Tony." The other boy sort of chuckled, probably noticing his obvious failure with Pepper. Tony sprawled out on the floor with a sound of frustration, knocking his head hard against the cool tile.

"Why do I hang out with you people?"

"You know I ask myself that same question everyday." Pepper quipped.

He dramatically clutched at his heart,"Ow. That hurts Pep, that really hurts. Why are you guys so boring anyway?"

"Well someone of us have to worry about our schoolwork Tony. We can't all be geniuses like you." Rhodey pointed out, taking a bite of his sandwich.

"Thank you." Tony said, batting his eyelashes at his friend.

"Rhodey's right Tony. This year looks like it'll be tough. I've already gotten assigned three projects due before the end of the six weeks."

Tony gave her a blank stare asking 'So?'.

She sighed,"I knew you wouldn't understand."

He hopped to his feet,You are right Peps I don't understand, and I hope I never will. I will leave you nerds to conspire or whatever it is nerds do. I'm going to the library."

He gasped dramatically, pointing at the two accusingly.

"Look what you two have done to me. I've been reduced to-Gulp-reading."

With a flick of his wrist in parting Tony turned on his heel, stuffing his hands in his pockets. Maybe he could find one of the latest science journals to keep himself busy with because let's face it, Tony was a bit of a nerd.

Bruce

'Sweet, the latest science journal.' Bruce thought with a small smile, pulling the journal from its spot on the rack and adding it to his steadily growing stack. Bruce was an avid reader. When he had no one science filled the gap in his heart. It was his light at the end of the tunnel, so logical and definate. It all made sense and had its place yet its possibilties were endless.

He picked up his stack, swaying a bit before getting a better grip and struggling over to a table. Sometimes he just wished for a little of the other guy's strength, just so he could actually do things like lift heavy text books.

"Here, let me help you with that." A kind voice said as his burden was lifted from his hands.

He warily smiled up at the blond with a red tipped mose carrying his books who smiled back down at him.

"Um, that's okay, I got it." He urged the other boy, reaching back for the books in the boy's hands. He knew he was just trying to help but Bruce knew it was in both their best interests if he just let him struggle with it.

The taller boy manuvered out off his reach, walking over to a table.

"No I insisit. I saw your knees knocking together with the strain and I thought I'd step in." He laughed. But the thing was it wasn't a cruel laugh, which was new for Bruce. It was good natured as if the two were old friends and sharing a past joke. So with this in mind Bruce allowed for the boy to carry his books. No matter how immasculating it sounded.

Steve

He could deny it no longer, today was the best day ever. He hadn't been picked on once, he made a friend(maybe two) and he had found a cool art book in the library. Yes today was a good day. But something was bothering him. It was this kid.

He was small, obviously too young for highschool or too small for his age, with sad looking brown eyes that had seen too much for such a small kid and it worried Steve. He had a strong urge to protect the boy, it was just part of his nature.

He set the boy's large stack of books on the table, smiling with satisfaction before hacking into the crook of his elbow.

"I'm Steve." He introduced, holding out his hand for a shake. The other boy smiled smally, a hinto of nervousness in his eyes.

"Bruce."

Steve felt giddy, another friend!(Because in his mind learning someone's name makes them your friend. Poor socially inept Steve.) He grinned, sitting down at the table across from the stack he had set down. Bruce looked at him skeptically but sat down across from him anyway, pulling the science journal in front of him and flipping it open. As the other boy read Steve looked through the stack of assembled books.

'Astrophysics? Quantum physics, radiology, Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde?' Steve thought, naming just a few of the books in the stack. This guy had a strange reading list.

"So..."Steve began awkwardly, despite his best intentions he still wasn't entirely sure how to interact with others yet. Bruce peeked up at him through his curly hair, waiting expectantly for him to continue.

"You look a little young for high school." Steve stated, absentmindedly twirled one of Bruce's books. The smaller boy smiled reasurringly.

"I'm small for my age."

"I believe it kid. But don't worry I'm not giant either. Ooh, the latest science journal." A new voice awed, plucking the journal from Bruce's small hand. Steve frowned at the newly arrived boy with messy brown hair.

"Hey, he was reading that." Steve protested, narrowing his eyes at the cocky looking boy. He raised an eyebrow at him, then grinned.

"Thanks for the observation blondy." He said with a smirk. He turned to Bruce, handing him back the journal and ruffling his curly hair.

"No harm done huh kid? Wouldn't want anymore emotional trouble loaded on after this morning." He commented, throwing himself into a chair at the head of the table, propping his feet up and grabbing one of Bruce's books, looking it over.

"I'm more of a tech man myself but I could get into some physics." He said, flipping the book open lazily.

Steve satred between the two boys who were reading, though he saw Bruce give ach of them a nervously glance while rolling and unrolling in shirt sleeve. These two sure were strange, but who was he to talk?

Natasha

The cafeteria was noisy. Much too noisy for her tastes, or for Clint's for that matter so they decided to move somewhere with the promise of silence. The library.

Natasha had to admit, at least to herself, as she moved through the tall bookselves that she missed reading. With her life on the helicarrier and her constant mission she didn't really have much time for it. Clint didn't care, he was more of a mindless videogame zombie anyway.

Her eyes scanned the seemingly endless shelf, fingers lightly tracing over the spines. She gazed up, watching as her partner silently moved along the tops of the shelves. He always liked high places, it was no surprise that he would wind up there. She wondered how he got up there in the first place. She shrugged it off, plucking a book from its hiding place.

"You coming hawk or are you gonna nest?" She asked with a smirk, looking up at him from his perch.

"Nest." He deadpanned, croaching.

She shrugged, turning on her heel and heading to the tables, leaving Clint to scan the area.

Natasha settled in on a chair, pulling her knees up to chest. She cracked open her book with a smile on her face, finally some quiet. Clint crashed onto the ground beside her, groaning as he rolled onto his back.

She raised an eyebrow at him,"What happened to you?"

He looked up at her, glaring at her with his blue eyes.

"Some prick thought it'd be funny to push me off the top of the shelf." He growled.

"Was it?"

"If it wasn't me yes."

A/N: The end of another chapter. So I don't know if I was the only one that was upset when Coleson died in the movie(my uncle told me before I saw it but I stilled cried. I love Coleson!) so not only is he alive in my story but I have a way to make him live forever! MWAHAHAHAHA! All will be explained in a few more chapters. In like chapter 10 or something but I'll hint at it in the upcoming chapters. Whoever guesses first gets a cookie! Okay not really but guess anyway. I'm curious to see your ideas.

-Watson


	4. Chapter 4

A/N:*Silently peeks head out from behind pillar with a guilty expression. When seeing all the glares staring back at her she yelps, quickly hiding behind said pillar again. Nervous laughter can be heard from behind the tall column* Heeeeeeeey guys. I know I've been gone for a long time and my excuse for that is I was grounded. Well that's inaccurate. First I had writer's block then I got grounded for six weeks so yeah. But that doesn't matter anymore because it's summer! Which means I can waste as many hours on the internet as I want!(Well I do have those pesky summer assignments for AP but I do most of my writing late at night so no worries) So I'm sorry this took so long but hopefully the length of the chapter makes up for the long wait.

Tony

Tony banged his head against the library table, hoping that maybe the pain would be able to draw his thoughts away from the mind-numbing boredum he was suffering from at the moment. So far the only thing it had accomplished was giving him a raging headache.

"Shh!" Tony lifted his head to give the wrinkled old librarian a bored stare in response to the glare she was sending his way. He couldn't even summon the strength to give her his signature grin due to the boredum induced fogginess in his brain. And this Physics textbook sure wasn't helping things. He basically knew everything that the book stated and he didn't need a refresher course in, well, anything so he was forced to entertain himself in some other way.

The dark haired boy tore his gaze away from the old woman's to look at his tablemates. His dark eyes fell on the curly haired teen before him. The smaller boy seemed pretty satisfied, his forehead creased with concentration as he read the pages of the magazine before him. Tony could feel impatience tug at his conciousness as he watched the boy slowly change the page. He really wanted that science journal but he restrained himself otherwise the blondie would get upset again. Speaking of the blondie...

Tony turned his head to look at the red-nosed reindeer sitting beside him. The blond haired boy had a happy smile on his face, his leg shaking up and down under the table. Tony frowned, well that was kinda annoying. The young billionaire peeked at the other boy's reading material before raising an eyebrow. An art book? Tony took another look at the larger boy. No, he really didn't look like the artistic type. He looked like the all-american boy: Blond hair, blue eyes, square jaw and wide shoulders. He looked like the quarterback type, who enjoyed apple pie baked by his mother on Sundays. Tony nodded to himself, that's the kind of guy he looked like. No doubt about it. He was probably a boy scout to top it all off.

As if sensing Tony's eyes on him Blondie looked up from his book to look at the dark haired boy. He raised an eyebrow when he caught Tony staring at him, a strange expression on his face. Tony smiled back, fluttering his eyelashes with a small flirtatious wave. Blondie blinked in surprise before quickly averting his gaze back to his book. Tony chuckled to himself, messing with people was just too easy sometimes. He frowned, that entertained him for about five seconds. Now what?

As Tony thought to himself he hummed quietly to himself, tapping his fingers lightly against the table. Beside him he saw Blondie stiffen, a small frown tugging at the corners of his mouth. Tony raised an eyebrow at the action, tapping his fingers a little quicker in experimentation. Sure enough Boy scout responded, his left eye twitching slightly as he changed the page in his book. Tony felt a grin slowly curl onto his lips. So the tapping bothered Blondie huh? He could have fun with this.

The dark haired boy's eyes flicked to the Physics book before him for a moment, reading the words displayed there. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Tony grinned slightly as he started to hum a little louder, looking to the boy for his reaction to Tony's action.

Sure enough the blond's eyes narrowed into a glare as he struggled to ignore the annoying brunette. Tony hummed to himself, bobbing his head up and down to the music only he heard in his head. He watched as the blond boy's muscles stiffened even further yet he still refused to say anything about it. The dark haired boy ignored the icy glares he got from the other library inhabitants due to the noise and grinned at the attention. Maybe he should rethink his posistion on Physics, it really was quite entertaining. He tapped his fingers to the rhythm in his head to the most annoying song he could think of, a giddy grin curling onto his lips as his favorite part of the song neared. He inhaled deeply, banging his hands loudly now as he began to sing.

"I'm a Barbie Girl! In a Barbie Wo-orld! Life in plastic, it's fantastic! You can brush my hair, undress me everywhe-eeere! Imagination, life is your creatio-"

"Would you please stop!?" The blondie yelled, slamming his hands forcefully on the desk as he turned to glare at Tony with those sky blue eyes of his. Tony blinked in slight surprise at the larger boy's outburst, not entirely expecting the yelling but it was entertaining to say the least.

"Shhh!" The old hag of a librarian hissed at Blondie, sending her own fierce glare his way. His face burned the same bright red as his nose as he smiled sheepishly, sinking lowly into his seat to avoid the glares thrown in his direction.

Tony smirked at the other boy's plight, leaning over to whisper to the scrawny boy hogging the science journal next to him.

"Sheesh, some people are just so inconsiderate." The curly haired boy gave a small smile in response without looking up, silently flipping his page. The boy scout, however, looked like he had many things to say to Tony, including some "Gosh darnit"s and many "Well gee"s. Tony nodded sagely to himself, All-American boy over there surely seemed like the type. The other boy steeled his glare at the dark haired teen, his mouth moving as he mumbled a "Gosh darnit." underneath his breath. Tony smirked to himself. Oh, how he loved being right.

Clint

The brown haired boy grumbled to himself as he moved swiftly along the tops of the bookshelves. He ignored the slight sting still panging in the center of his chest from his unexcpected 'trip' while he searched for his assailant. That little snot-nosed brat didn't know what he had coming to him, not now that he had incured the wrath of the mighty Hawkeye! He laughed manically under his breath as he continued to crawl along the shelves. Although he was set in revenge mode at the moment Clint couldn't help puzzling over the boy who had pushed him. The way he was remembering what happened didn't entirely make sense.

/FLASHBACK/

Clint stalked along the shelves top, smirking to himself as he avoided detection. He wasn't one of S.H.E.I.L.D.'s top youth opperative for nothing. Sure, he was a bit arrogant but could you blame him? He was, of course, simply amazing. With that thought in his mind Clint grinned to himself, basking in his own self-proclaimed awesomeness.

Silently the blue eyed boy leapt onto another shelf, smiling as it didn't so much as shift under his landing.

"Quite impressive." Clint froze for a moment at the sound of a voice. Crap, he was caught for sure now. He could literally feel as his awesomeness flew from his body. 'No, come back...' he thought weakly, holding out his hand as if reaching for the fleeing amazingness.

"Well that's just strange." Clint frowned at the mocking tone of the voice, turning to glare at the source of his greatness leaving him. Nobody made a fool out of Clint Barton! No one had been more wrong in the history of the world. Ever.

Clint blinked, looking in confusion at the boy sprawled out before him. His emerald green eyes watched Clint as his thin lips curled into a mischevious smirk, sending an involuntary shiver down the agent's spine. He had the strange feeling that he should be careful around this kid, though why he couldn't be sure. He breathed a slight breath of relief at not actually being caught by an authority figure but it stung his pride a bit to realize he had been discovered by a child(one that was obviously younger than him to boot). Clint raised an eyebrow at the younger boy before speaking.

"What are you doing up here kid? In fact, how did you get up here in the first place?" The smaller boy's eyes narrowed at Clint's jab at his age, lips peeling away from his teeth in a sneer.

"Kid? Hmph, peasant you best remember your place." The dark haired boy scoffed, smirking at Clint.

The blue eyed boy blinked, mouthing 'peasant' to himself in slight confusion. He'd been called worse things, things that if he said would get his mouth washed out with soap(S.H.I.E.L.D. had a strict 'no profanity' policy, though that didn't stop Clint) but there was something in this kid's voice that caused Clint's eyes to narrow. Something about the pure smugness that made Clint's eye twitch. It made Clint feel like he was being laughed at, and if there was one thing Clint Barton had it was being laughed at.

"Peasant? Just who do you think you are?" The S.H.E.I.L.D. agent nearly growled, moving toward the green eyed boy menacingly. He wasn't gonna hurt him, Clint wasn't a bully, he just wanted to scare the kid a little. The other boy grinned a sickly sweet, his eye slightly crazed as he flipped a page in the ols weathered book before him.

"I believe that I am Loki. While this has been a wondorous conversation I do believe that it's time for you to go." With that being said the younger boy lifted his hand, palm towards Clint. The brown haired boy barely had time to raise an eyebrow in confusion before he felt the air flee his lungs as a strong force struck his chest. He gasped at the pain and shock of the situation while he felt himself fall backwards.

'He pushed me,' was Clint's only thought as his back collided with the ground.

/END FLASHBACK/

So there Clint was on the shelf tops, puzzling and puzzling until his puzzler was sore. He couldn't remember the younger boy even laying a hand on him, but he had of course. There was no other possible explaination...was there?

Clint searched silently for his prey until his eyes fell on a head of black hair on the book shelf three shelves away from his. A sadistic smirk grew onto the brwonhaired boy's face as he leapt from shelf top to shelf top until he reached the other boy. Clint moved closer to the boy whose back was turned to him until he was about two feet away from him before sitting down, his legs dangling off the sides of the shelf. Clint leaned back on his palms before schooling his features into an indifferent gaze(taught to him by S.H.E.I.L.D.) before speaking.

"Don't you know it's rude to push people from bookshelves? Didn't your mother teach you any manners?" Clint asked, waiting for the younger boy to look at him.

"Didn't your mother teach you that it is rude to sneak up on people?" The other boy asked, looking over his shoulder at Clint.

"My mother's dead." Clint stated matter'o'factly, as if he was telling him the time. The other boy nodded with a slight frown.

"How unfortunate," he said, turning his head back to whatever was in front of him, probably that book from earlier. Clint hear the sound of a page turning before the younger boy speak again.

"Now who will teach you manners?" Clint took the jab calmly, not allowing his anger to effect him as it had done earlier. Instead he calmly rolled up the sleeves of his hoodie while looking at the younger boy's back.

"I don't know, but I s'pose it's my job to teach you some."

The younger boy scoffed, turning his emerald gaze back to Clint, mirth gleaming in their reflective surface.

"I'd like to see you try." The younger boy said, truning his head away from Clint and lifting his head to the heavens. The brown haired boy watched in confusion as the other boy inhaled deeply.

"Thor! This mortal is being unkind to me!" He yelled with a calm expression. Clint winced at the other boy's volume, faltering for a moment before shushing him.

"Dude, what are you doin? This is a libarary-" Clint was cut off, however, by a flash of yellow followed closely by an eruption of pain slamming into his shoulder. Clint felt as he was knocked off his feet, sent flying across the library until he fell onto a table, breaking it into a mass of splinters. He groaned, rubbing his back and trying to keep his vision from spinning.

"What was that?" The S.H.I.E.L.D. agent groaned, picking himself from the debris around him. That hit had come from completely nowhere, it didn't make sense.

"Clint?" The brown haired boy looked up from his own misery, his blue eyes meeting a pair of dark brown ones. He waved his hand in a two fingered salute.

"'Sup Bruce?" He asked nonchalantly, as if he crashed into tables everyday.

Bruce stared down at the other boy in slight confusion and shock while another dark haired boy sitting next to him was laughing loudly, holding his stomach as if he may fall to pieces.

"Are you okay?" A blond boy Clint didn't know asked, looking at him with concern while holding out his hand to help the other boy out of the remains of the table. Clint looked at him for a moment before getting out of the debris by himself, ignoring the offered hand.

"I'm fine. Thanks."

"Dude! What happened to you?" The dark haired teen asked between laughs, wiping away the tears that formed at the corners of his eyes. Clint glared at him, opening his mouth to answer when someone beat him to it.

"Who dares try to harm my brother!?" The group all turned towards the source of the voice. The dark haired boy started to snicker while the blond's forehead creased in recognition.

"Thor?" The other large blond, whose eyes were set in a glare aimed at Clint looked over to the other boy before smiling.

"Oh hello Steve."

"What did you do this time Clint?" Natasha asked as she sashshayed up to the scene(and yes, she does sashshay).

"Hey Nat."

"Tony!"

The group of teenagers all looked towards the dark haired boy with matching looks of confusion. He simply jutted out his bottom lip, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Well nobody else was going to say it."

"What's going on here!?" The old librarian screeched, storming towards the small group of teenagers with her face contorted into a mask of anger. Clint felt the blood drain from his face as he looked back and forth between the librarian and the smashed table. Well, this can't be good.


End file.
